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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1997/07/23 - Minutes - PC-HPC CITY OF RANCHO CUCAMONGA PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES ... Regular Meeting July 23, 1997 Chairman Barker called the Regular Meeting of the City of Rancho Cucarnonga Planning Commission to order at 7:09 p.m. The meeting was held in the Council Chamber at Rancho Cucamonga Civic Center, 10500 Civic Center Drive, Rancho Cucamonga, California. ROLL CALL COMMISSIONERS: PRESENT: David Barker, William Bethel, Rich Macias, Peter Tolstoy ABSENT: Larry McNiel STAFF PRESENT: Brad Bullet, City Planner; Dan Coleman, Principal Planner; Ralph Hanson, Deputy City Attorney; Dan James, Senior Civil Engineer; Brent Le Count, Associate Planner; Gail Sanchez, Planning Commission Secretary ANNOUNCEMENTS Brad Bullet, City Planner, announced that this was the last meeting that Deputy City Attorney Ralph Hanson would be attending. Chairman Barker presented a Resolution of Commendation to Mr. Hanson. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Motion: Moved by Bethel, seconded by Macias, carried 3-0-1-1 (McNiel absent, Barker abstain), to approve the minutes of June 25, 1997. PUBLIC HEARINGS A. ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT AND TENTATIVE TRACT 15798 - FRIEDMAN - A request to subdivide 19.26 acres of land into 45 lots for the purpose of single family home construction in the Low Residential District (2-4 dwelling units per acre) of the Etiwanda Specific Plan, located west of the 1-15 Freeway and south of Highland Avenue - APN: 227-071-32. Staff has prepared a mitigated Negative Declaration of environmental impacts for consideration. (Continued from June 25, 1997.) Brent Le Count, Associate Planner, presented the staff report. Chairman Barker observed that the Commission had requested further clarification regarding the emergency access points. Mr. Le Count showed the emergency egress points. Chairman Barker noted that the staff report indicated it is the responsibility of the church to address access from Whitestone Drive to Highland Avenue. Dan James, Senior Civil Engineer, stated that when the church process plans for the temporary youth facility, access was provided from Whitestone Drive to Highland Avenue. He said that the City will have to approve final plans for the overall site and access will be consider_ed? ' Commissioner Tolstoy asked the disposition of the properly when the Starstone Place access is deleted upon completion of the freeway. Mr. James replied that the properly belongs to the property owner to the east and the easement would merely be vacated, allowing the property owner to do as he wishes. Commissioner Tolstoy asked if it could become a permanent access. Mr. James responded thai ;he City would have to go through street dedication or condemnation. Commissioner Tolstoy observed that Smokestone Street will be punched over the channel and extended into the new tract. He stated that access to the homes could be through Catalpa Street or Mulberry Street once the freeway is completed. He indicated he had visited the site and he felt residents could have a problem getting over the chain link fence at emergency access points 3 or 4 during the freeway construction. He asked if a gate will be available to the residents. Mr. James replied that the bridge portion is City properly. He said there will be a fence and gate installed but City crews would have to be there to open the gate. Commissioner Tolstoy felt that during freeway construction when Highland Avenue is closed down, there needs to be some way for residents to be able to access the dirt road at access points 3 or 4. Brad Bullet, City Planner, stated that staff met with the Fire District to review the access points. He said local emergency situations were discussed with respect to the need to evacuate and the Fire District felt there were adequate options. He asked if Mr. Tolstoy was looking for pedestrian or vehicular access. Commissioner Tolstoy stated he was looking for pedestrian as a minimum but would prefer vehicular. Mr. James felt opening up the channel would be an attractive nuisance on a daily basis as opposed to an emergency situation which may or may not occur. Commissioner Macias asked the risk of liability to the City if children are able to enter lhe channel on a daily basis. Mr. Buller replied that it could be a public nuisance and the risk would be a greater risk because of more use. He suggested the road could be fenced off. He indicated staff would pursue the option if directed by the Planning Commission. Commissioner Tolstoy stated it was his understanding that the grade of East Avenue will be built up in order to cross over the freeway. He said he would be comfortable if egress could be up Starstone Place to Highland Avenue and over to East Avenue; however, he did not feel it would be possible to maintain that access during the grading. He felt there should always be two ways of egress. Mr. James commented that the East Avenue/Highland Avenue intersection closing will occur whether or not the project is built. He noted the project is only adding 45 homes to the situation. Chairman Barker stated he would like to have some way to knock down the barriers at exits 3 or 4 with a car. He agreed that two points of egress are needed and stated that not everyone would be physically able to climb over a fence. Planning Commission Minutes -2- July 23, 1997 Mr. Buller stated that staff had talked to Caltrans about a temporary access at East and Highland Avenues even while construction is going on. He pointed out that access points 2.., 3, and 4 would also be available .... - ' Chairman Barker felt access point 2 is too close to 1 and points 3 or 4 should be used. Mr. Bullet stated that staff would look to see if the options could be improved. Chairman Barker noted that the public hearing remained open. Jon Friedman, 9301 Wilshire Boulevard, #100, Beverly Hills, agreed with the staff report. He stated the project is complicated by the Caltrans project. He said he has had ongoing discussions with Caltrans and he believed Caltrans has acknowledged that it will keep emergency access available at all times to address the existing homes. He said it was his understanding that after the construction of Smokestone Street and Mulberry Street, Caltrans will build the freeway through lanes and the freeway lanes will be approximately the same grade as Highland Avenue. He said Caltrans would then close the East Avenue and Highland Avenue intersection for construction and Caltrans had told him they would have the physical ability to divert traffic up to the freeway lanes. He agreed there should always be two points of access and said they do not object to coming up with a better gate system. He indicated that project engineer Mr. Webb and the property owner were available to answer questions. He asked that staff and the existing residents help Friedman to apply pressure on Caltrans. He stated they would like to have construction traffic use the Caltrans construction access and the Caltrans engineer has said that sounds reasonable. John Tdpp, 6610 Starstone Place, Rancho Cucamonga, stated he is a Fire Captain for the County of Los Angeles. He said two points of all weather emergency access are required by various codes. He did not have confidence that Caltrans will retain the access off Starstone Place. He stated that in December a wildfire had come near the tract and he observed that people do not evacuate from fires on foot, but rather by vehicle. He said the emergency access must be onto public rights of way onto all weather roads. He acknowledged that if the tract goes in before the freeway construction, there will be two access points, Mulberry Street over Highland Avenue and Catalpa Street and East Avenue but said there must continue to be two points during freeway construction. Mr. James noted that Mulberry Street could be taken to Highland Avenue, then down Starstone Place. Mr. Tripp said that emergency services may well be unavailable for the first 72 hours of an emergency and the residents need to be able to evacuate without having someone come to open gates for them. He indicated there are a lot of children in the neighborhood and he felt the additional 45 homes will add too much traffic to Smokestone Street. Commissioner Bethel asked how many people have been killed in fires because they were unable to evacuate. Mr. Tripp responded that 29 people were unable to drive down the clogged streets in the Oakland Hills fire and 3 people died in the Topanga fire because they could not outrun the fire. Commissioner Bethel asked how many children are pulled from storm drains. Mr. Tripp replied about a dozen a year. Carrie MacDonald, 13560 Smokestone Street, Rancho Cucamonga, stated she lives on Smokestone Street adjacent to the wash. She stated two people who live in the neighborhood are confined to wheelchairs and there are several elderly people. She was opposed to leaving an unlocked gate in the area because she felt steps need to be taken to keep children out of the wash. She indicated her son is mentally handicapped and she would not be able to keep him from going through an Planning Commission Minutes -3- July 23, 1997 unlocked gate. She questioned if homeowners insurance costs would increase for residents because of increased fire danger. She felt that if there were a fire along East Avenue, exits 1, 2, 7, and 8 would be blocked. She agreed that the new 45 homes are not the problem and that Caltrans is the problem but felt building an additional 45 homes adds to the problem. She said that exits 3 and 4 would only be accessible to healthy adults. Hearing no further testimony, Chairman Barker closed the public hearing. Commissioner Bethel stated he did not think the 45 homes are the problem, but rather the closing of the Highland Avenue and East Avenue intersection during freeway construction. He stated that people have died in fires because the fire overtakes them, not because they have encountered a locked gate; however, children die from getting into a wash. He said the project was not the issue, bu! rather that Caltrans must be more responsible on such issues as access and construction traffic. Commissioner Tolstoy stated that all of Rancho Cucamonga will be impacted and inconvenienced during the construction of the freeway and residents will just have to live with that inconvenience. He did not object to the tract but questioned the adequacy of secondary access during the freeway construction. Commissioner Macias stated that secondary access and public safety is clearly an issue and he agreed that Caltrans and the freeway construction are the problem. He asked if the City had exhausted all possible avenues with Caltrans. He felt the development is a good one but said the Planning Commission has to consider public safety. He thought staff should be directed to further investigate the matter and return with solutions. Chairman Barker stated people have indicated what Caltrans should do, but Caltrans is another entity. He observed that Mr. Friedman believed that Caltrans would be able to provide access, but he noted that it was only a verbal understanding. He did not feel it would be adequate to provide only another small access in the same area. He stated he could not vote for the project until he had been shown a solution because he felt there is an obligation to provide two access points. He did not think a chain link fence and gate provides adequate egress. He reopened the public headng for Mr. Friedman to comment. Mr. Fdedman said they had filed a lawsuit against Caltrans to ensure the second access. He pointed out that the Fire Division standard conditions require two points of access before recordation of the final map. Chairman Barker said he also had to satisfy the Planning Commission. He felt staff recognized the Commission's concerns. Mr. Buller suggested that the City might negotiate with Caltrans during approval of the freeway plans. Chairman Barker was not comfortable with dumping the matter back on Caltrans. Mr. Bullet suggested a condition be added that an approved secondary all-weather emergency access be available. Commissioner Bethel did not feel it would be fair to stop the project if the access were blocked. Mr. Fdedman stated he would support addition of the condition as suggested by Mr. Buller. He said he would not even obtain construction loans until the access is locked in place. He commented that the houses wilt require development review and suggested that the access could also be placed as a condition on the development review. He noted the existing residents will have the same problem. He stated that Caltrans has a legal obligation to provide a secondary access for the existing residents. He said that they would work out details with the Flood Control District if necessary and stated he needed a project before Caltrans or the Flood Control District would take him seriously. Planning Commission Minutes -4- July 23, 1997 Chairman Barker again closed the public hearing. Chairman Barker felt the applicant had a project if there is acceptable secondary access. He thought points 2 and 8 were not adequate. Mr. Hanson suggested adding a condition that emergency access plans must be approved prior to recordation of the final map. Commissioner Tolstoy stated that the access should be available 24 hours per day, so that it would be available during the work day when Caltrans is working. Motion: Moved by Bethel, seconded by Tolstoy, to issue a Negative Declaration and adopt the resolution approving Tentative Tract 15798 with modifications to require approval of emergency access plans regarding secondary access to be approved by the City Planner. Motion carried by the following vote: AYES: BARKER, BETHEL, MACIAS, TOLSTOY NOES: NONE ABSENT: MCNIEL - carried DIRECTOR'S REPORTS B. CHARLES JOSEPH ASSOCIATES - A request to consider initiation of text changes to the Industrial Area Specific Plan to add "Automobile Service Station" as a conditionally permitted use in the Haven Avenue Overlay District. Dan Coleman, Principal Planner, presented the staff repod. Commissioner Bethel stated that the existing facility at Haven Avenue and Jersey Street is acceptable because it is virtually invisible. He feared approving the text changes would allow stations which will not be so hidden. Chairman Barker invited public comment. Charles J. Buquet, Charles Joseph Associates, 10681 Foothill Boulevard, Suite 395, Rancho Cucamonga, stated the applicant has a number of existing Arco stations in southern California. He said the applicant would meet City standards with regards to design and he showed a plan. He indicated they would use the existing driveways. He said it is a 2-acre site and they propose an Arco facility with business support services. He did not feel it is feasible to have office development on a 2-acre parcel and said that the proposal would allow development at its highest and best use. He stated the City would still have control over development under a conditional use permit process. Mr. Buquet provided a copy of a letter from Brad Umansky of Lee & Associates which concluded that there was a Iow probability of office development on the site and that a service station would be an asset. John Kofdarali, 1201 Dove Street, Suite 520, Newpod Beach, stated they intend to build a facility that is unlike previous Arco stations and said they would work with staff to build a facility which fits the City. Commissioner Tolstoy recalled that when an office building was proposed for this site, plans called for driveway access to the office building to the south. Mr. Coleman confirmed that was correct and said the current plan still calls for providing that access. Planning Commission Minutes -5- July 23, 1997 Brad Buller, City Planner, commented that anyone wishing to initiate an amendment to the text must obtain approval from the City to submit an application. He stated that although it was interesting to look at the proposed facility, the question at this time was whether it would be.a p~ssibility that the use would be acceptable and whether the project proponent can submit an application. Commissioner Tolstoy stated the question is whether the Commission wishes to have the Haven Avenue Oveday Distdct revisited and he said he was willing to allow the proponent to move forward with an application. However, he said the Commission needs to assure itself that a service station has a positive location. He felt unacceptable locations would be near the intersections of Foothill Boulevard and Haven Avenue and Fourth Street and Haven Avenue. He felt merely siting stations 300 feet from the intersections would be unacceptable. He thought the design presented was acceptable, but not appropriate for Haven Avenue. He also disputed the contention that a service station would be the highest and best use for the property. Commissioner Macias felt the concept warrants consideration to work with the applicant to look at the feasibility. He observed he is a commuter and said he believes there is a need for stations on Haven Avenue. He agreed that the drawing was inadequate. He supported allowing the proponent to move forward with an application to change the text but stated the applicant should understand that he felt a proposed station would have to be above and beyond the drawing provided. Commissioner Bethel felt "no building" zones might be considered. He feared the application may open the gates and said he did not support the request. Chairman Barker said he was very concerned regarding opening a can of worms. He said he was willing to look at the Haven Avenue Overlay District. He indicated it would be necessary for the applicant to convince him that approving the amendment would not open the door to a line of service stations, but he did not know how it would be possible to develop criteria which would not give special consideration to the first applicant. Mr. Buller said it would be staff's approach to look at the entire corridor. He indicated the applicant may be asked to provide information regarding need and appropriate corners. He said the Commission was not consenting to anything site specific or regarding design and the minutes would reflect the concerns raised by the Commission. Commissioner Tolstoy felt it is always a good idea to look at a plan adopted many years ago but it may be determined that the Commission wishes to reaffirm that service stations are not desirable on Haven Avenue. Commissioner Bethel concurred. Chairman Barker felt it would be good to revisit the corridor. Motion: Moved by Tolstoy, seconded by Macias, to direct staff to process an amendment to the Industrial Area Specific Plan upon receipt of an application and fees. Motion carried by the following vote: AYES: BARKER, BETHEL, MACIAS, TOLSTOY NOES: NONE ABSENT: MCNIEL - carried Commissioner Tolstoy suggested that various types of service stations be considered; i.e.. with and without fast food. The Planning Commission recessed from 8:42 p.m. to 8:49 p.m. Planning Commission Minutes -6- July 23, 1997 PUBLIC COMMENTS There were no public comments at this time. Staff made a farewell presentation to Ralph Hanson, Deputy City Attorney. The Planning Commission recessed at 9:04 p.m. and reconvened in the Rains Room to discuss Pre-Application Review 97-05. At the conclusion of the Pre-Application Review workshop, Items C, D, E, and F were continued to August 13, 1997. COMMISSION BUSINESS C. FOOTHILL BOULEVARD ACTIVITY CENTERS It was the consensus of the Commission to continue this matter to August 13, 1997. D. DESIGN REVIEW COMMITTEE APPOINTMENTS It was the consensus of the Commission to continue this matter to August 13, 1997. E. SIGNS/MULTI-FAMILY TASK FORCE UPDATE It was the consensus of the Commission to continue this matter to August 13, 1997. F. FOOTHILL BOULEVARD/ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TASK FORCE UPDATE It was the consensus of the Commission to continue this matter to August 13, 1997. ADJOURNMENT 10:30 p.m. - The Planning Commission simultaneously adjourned both the regular Planning Commission meeting and the Pre-Application Review 97-05 Workshop. The minutes of the workshop appear separately. Brad Buller Secretary Planning Commission Minutes -7- July 23, 1997